I started using Dragon dictation software when it first launched, back in 1997. As an author, I spent way too many hours typing, and my arms were complaining. I had high hopes, but the program really didn’t work very well. Ditto for the first several versions — I kept trying them, desperate for something that would solve my pain! (The latest versions are soooo much better!)

To make matters worse, in the early 2000s Dragon didn’t have much competition, so we pretty much had to take whatever kind of pricing and customer service they threw at us. It wasn’t great. But now competition has heated up (Siri, anyone?), and that has driven the company to start improving customer experience.

In the first interview on today’s podcast, Galvin discusses the internal portal she’s developed to help share customer experience (CX) best practices, learning, and praise for staff who deliver great CX. (In the podcast I also mention the O Positive tool at Oxford Properties. It’s pretty cool. Check it out!)

When the company first got interested in CX improvement, Nuance made the mistake many do: it focused on customers, but forgot that staff are key to getting those improvements made. Now “we’ve realized that staff play a crucial role to get client engagement,” says Galvin.

It has also started working more closely with customers to really understand their needs, frustrations, and how they see the future for Nuance.

“Now we’re allowing our customers to lead us… instead of us telling customers where we want to go.” Carolyn Galvin, Nuance

It sounds obvious that you should listen to your customers, but it is so easy to slip away from doing so. Especially if you are used to being the only game in town. But nobody’s immune to competition now.

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Tema’s Travels

What a great view to end a day of cycling in the mountains of Corsica!

I said I’d tell you about my trip, for those who are curious. It was awesome! We went to Florence (which I’d been to before, but not for decades) and then to Corsica, which is stunningly beautiful!

We did a tour of the “Cap de Corse” (the northern part of the island) by bicycle. It is very mountainous, so I was grateful to have a bike with an electric assist! If you are part of a couple where one is a keen cyclist and the other likes the idea but isn’t so keen on grunting up hills, an electric bike is the way to go!

We also had a crazy customer experience challenge with some airlines. We fell through the cracks on a code share between KLM, Air France and Air Corsica. I’ll be writing about that one soon.

Tema Frank has been helping businesses and organizations market themselves more effectively on the Internet since the late 1990s. In 2001 she founded Web Mystery Shoppers Inc., one of the world's first remote usability testing companies, and one of the very few to do large-sample size usability testing.

In 2012 she launched the Frank Online Marketing Show, a weekly podcast devoted to helping Canadian companies become more successful online.

She has taught e-marketing at the University of Alberta and the Université de Pau et des Pays de l'Adour (in France), given seminars and workshops on the topic, and written about how the internet can help businesses sell more and communicate better.

She is also the author of the best-selling book, "Canada's Best Employers for Women: A guide for job-hunters, employees and employers."